HAKS wrote: I simply will not buy from anyone that uses them now. Looked like a very poorly run business.

Hi HAKS, thanks for your feedback, I will take your experience and let the boss know that CP is keeping people from ordering from us, and since customer happiness and satisfaction is our #1 goal (as well as competitive prices), we will need to sort this out ASAP.

Thanks again for everyone's honest and constructive feedback...with you guys, we never need to wonder how to improve the business, we only need to listen to you.

Second order from PBK in as many years and second stuff up. I'd like to say I'll never go back but know that's unrealistic.

Ordered a saddle that came in black/white colour - they sent me a version in white/black. Very subtle difference I know but it is a different colour (Fizik Arione R3 FYI). Had a feeling they would stuff it up because of this colour scheme and naming.

Email them to find out what's going on and the reply 'oh we seem to be out of stock of the one you ordered so that's why we sent you this one'. I questioned whether they would send a red saddle if I had ordered a blue one that was out of stock and if they still thought that was acceptable - they ignored that of course.

Long story short, I'm getting a refund, they're paying the return postage and giving me back my 15% off voucher code I wasted on the purchase so not all bad except for wasted time and trip to the PO. However, FFS, why send the thing halfway around the world in the first place if it's not the right item. Not to mention, make sure your inventory matches your website, no good letting an order in then telling someone it's out of stock.

Yep, PBK sucks. I had such a bad dealing with them that they're off the shopping list completely. For mine, they're the same category of retailer as cycling express. They'd have to offer a fricken steep discount for me to even consider dealing with them!

Last edited by boss on Thu May 09, 2013 8:52 pm, edited 2 times in total.

HAKS wrote:The Canberra branch of Couriers Please are a complete joke. My last order from Cell ended up with me spending an hour in their depot with the manager trying to find my parcel. They didn't leave a card for me yet the website said delivery attempted twice and item was in depot. Not one driver said he had been to my street let along suburb on the days it said it was delivered. Eventually found it but wasted a lot of my time. I simply will not buy from anyone that uses them now. Looked like a very poorly run business.

Add me to this list as well, the Melbourne ones are no better. Ive had 2 stuff arounds with them with Cell orders and emailed Cell last year to say I can't buy from you guys if you keep using them. First time they re-delivered to the wrong address, fortunately I still had the 'sorry we missed you' card, 15 minutes after calling head office the driver shows up at my front door saying it was delivered yesterday so I pull out the card and ask why do I still have this? Next thing his wife shows up and realises she delivered it to the wrong address, thankfully it was still there. Next time I kept an eye on their website to see the delivery status and notice the website says parcel has been delivered and a forged signature which is not mine from the electronic delivery device. Could not believe it, call up head office again they tell me its been delivered and signed for, I tell them its not my signature and I dont have any package. About an hour later same woman from the first stuff up turns up at my front door again all apologies. Just incredible, I have no faith in them at all.

I recently purchased a set of Mavic Aksium rims from Cell fail bikes, after purchasing some with my bike from Reid Cycles. I'm sure some will argue that 'in accordance with Cell fail's return policy etc etc'.

Note:-

- I am a prolific online shopper, particularly shopping on ebay and wiggle.- I'm really uninterested in the technicalities of the law - requesting beyond it is not through ignorance, rather by the principle that you do not keep return customers by quoting law/ policy defenses when you are supplying faulty products!- after reading the 'support lbs' threads, I thought I would at least try and buy Australian- I own another set of the rims purchased, and they have been amazing- I have spent in excess of $600 at other online retailers in the time between this purchase and will be spending more in the future.- this purchase was to see if things would go as smoothly as other online retailers. If it was, Cell Fail would have become my new online haunt.- I have always seen sales that go wrong as an opportunity for the seller, online or not, to make good/ wow the socks off the customer so they return with additional confidence.

All I can say, is after this experience, I will be sticking to other online retailers.

The first piece of correspondence on 2 March 2013 sums it up pretty well...

To the Proper Officer

Dear Sir/Madam,

On 26 February 2013, I purchased a set of Mavic Aksium rims from Cell bikes. On arrival, the box the rims were contained in was damaged. Given the position of the damage (lower side corner), I thought little of it, as it appeared to be away from the rims. I proceeded to fit tires and mount them on the bike.

I have cycled ~60kms, commuting to work and back. I have had a look over the bike for its weekly maintenance check. I have noted that the rear rim is bent and touching the brake pad, whereas the front rim remains true.

Given they are a brand new set of rims, and there has been nothing unusual about the commuting (all on smooth main roads), I cannot understand why the rear rim is bent, as I have another set of these rims, which I have had for roughly 6-12 months, which are as true as when they were originally purchased.

I am concerned that this rim has bent within 60kms, and believe it is defective. I have spoken with S on the shop telephone line, who noted the rim may need to be returned for it to reviewed, and trued.

This is not an acceptable remedy as I do not want a defective rim that will simply go out of shape upon receiving it back.

Accordingly, can you advise on how to remedy this situation, as it very disappointing to have to return to my old rims.

Yours faithfully,

Lurkin

The response to this was

Hi Lurkin

I'm sorry to hear that. Are you able to send through some images of the bent rim and I will respond to you once I've had a chance to assess the damage?

Kind RegardsX

I respond to this query with video of the bent rim on 4/3/2013.

I receive the following response on 5/3/2013.

Hi Lurkin

It appears that the wheel just needs to be trued. Are you able to take it to a local bike store and we will reimburse you for the cost? Generally it costs approximately $30.

Kind RegardsX

On 6/3/2013 I respond:-

Hi X,

I am aware that the rim potentially could be trued.

However, my concern is why the rim is bending so quickly. 60km's is minimal use in comparison to the countless km's my other Mavic Aksium rims have endured without bending.

As detailed in my prior correspondence, I do not want a rim that will simply continually bends out of shape and requires straightening in abnormally small distances.

Consequently, I argue the rim is defective and unfit for the purpose it was sold for.

I would prefer to return the rim in exchange for a replacement.

Yours faithfully,

Lurkin.

On 7/3/2013 I receive:

Hi Anonymous,

Please send the wheel back to us at the address listed below for further inspection. You can also include a receipt for the cost of postage which will be refunded to you if the wheel is found to be faulty.

Whos Annoymous?Given there was no choice other than to send back the rim, I did so.

On 14 March 2013, I receive the following email:-

Hi Lurkin,

I have received your returned wheel and was just wondering if you could give me a brief outline of the issues with the wheel?

RegardsX

On 14/3/2013 I respond:-

Hi X,

Please refer to case Y.

We have returned the wheel has bent within 60kms of ordinary commuting, as previously advised.

Thanks

Lurkin.[/i]

On 15/3/2013 I receive:-Hi Lurkin,Our mechanic's have inspected your wheel. The wheel itself is not defective, but does need to be trued. Some wheel's do require trueing on a regular basis, depending where and how they are ridden.

Can you confirm which address you would like it to be returned to after it has been trued?

I will also require your bank account details so that the $28.40 postage costs can be refunded to you.

RegardsX

On 16/3/2013 I respond:-

Hi X,

I refer to my correspondence dated 2 March 2013, with regard to the matter of the return of a defective rear Mavic Aksium rim.

My prior correspondence acknowledged that the rim could be trued, in order to make it straight.

However, it also detailed that the rim bent within 60kms of use. I have compared this to commuting for 6- 12 months on another set of the same rims, which have not bent in that time and have not required truing. I have detailed that the conditions they were exposed to, being smooth main roads with no unusual circumstances.

This does not accord with your explanation that 'some wheel's do require trueing on a regular basis, depending where and how they are ridden', as in my experience with another set of the same rims, they have not required trueing after a significantly longer period of commuting, under the same conditions. I note that the rear rim in question has not remained true after two days of commuting.

Accordingly, I conclude that the rear rim is defective, causing it to bend prematurely.

The rim is not fit for the purpose it has been sold for, and truing the rim will not fix its weakness. As previously advised, this remedy is unacceptable.

I do not want a defective rim to be returned to me, for it to bend within 60 kms. The rims that came with my commuting bike are more durable and it would defeat the purpose of purchasing these rims if I was to accept its return.

Consequently, I request a replacement rim.

In addition, all future correspondence with regard to this matter to be emailed to [Lurkin's email address] . My bank account details for the refund of the freight of the rim are:-

We can only declare a wheel to be defective if there is a clear manufacturing fault with the wheel. A wheel which is out of true, regardless of whether it's after 60km or 600km is not a sign of a defective wheel. The wheel was examined in our workshop and repaired within 10 minutes.

Keep in mind that comparing it to your old wheel, any number of factors could account for it being out of true, such as changes in the surface of the road, changes in the weight of the rider, etc.

I was unaware that they could only drop off during business hours. Unfortunately, I had given a residential address and there was no one to pick it up.

Went through their online medium to sort it out by requesting it to a work address. Email response stated no can do as it has to come from the seller and I have to agree that the parcel can be dropped off at the door without signing.

I email back advising thats not an option as it would go missing in this neighbourhood and advise of a time it can be dropped off.

It doesn't get dropped off and I am advised it can be picked up from Port Melbourne... in business hours....

Tried telephone calling Nothankyoucouriers who refused to drop it off anywhere other than the designated address. Informed them of a date where someone would be home in business hours.

Date passes, no drop off.

Ring Nothankyoucouriers. Turns out they had attempted dropping it off a number of times... I asked the guy if it was the date specified. He asked the same question back to me and started realing off the dates. Subsequently, they have sent it back to Sydney.

Either - they came on the date specified and didn't knock on the door, or they had tried to drop it off whenever they pleased.

Further, whats wrong with using a telephone?

then, to top it off the rim is sent back to me by registered Australian post without any notification or warning by Cell fail.

I go to pick it up today and the box has been through world war 2 - its rooted.

thankfully, the rim appears straight. But for how long????

In summary:-

- Yes Cell fail 'fixed' the rim - temporarily- Yes this means that it will fail again, and I will pay more postage sending the rotten piece of rubbish back to Cell fail.- at $30 a pop, its quickly going to be cheaper to buy a new set from someone else which totally defeats the purpose of dealing with Cell fail at all- at the rate that Cell Fail and Nothankyoucouriers waste people's time, its cheaper, less stressful and more convenient to purchase from an LBS- No, they have NOT provided adequate explanation for it being dodgy in the first place- No, they did not take advantage of the opportunity to upsell/ think beyond the one sale/ respect a customer's intelligence and reading their correspondence instead of steamrolling through it and stating the obvious- No, I haven't received any confirmation of payment of the postage that was incurred sending the rim back to Cell Fail.- No, Nothankyoucouriers are utterly useless and a total detriment to the transport industry and anyone related to it.- No, I won't be buying anything more from Cell fail. Other online retailers are far better at customer service and problem solving when something goes wrong.

- Yes Cell fail 'fixed' the rim - temporarily- Yes this means that it will fail again, and I will pay more postage sending the rotten piece of rubbish back to Cell fail.- at $30 a pop, its quickly going to be cheaper to buy a new set from someone else which totally defeats the purpose of dealing with Cell fail at all- at the rate that Cell Fail and Nothankyoucouriers waste people's time, its cheaper, less stressful and more convenient to purchase from an LBS- No, they have NOT provided adequate explanation for it being dodgy in the first place- No, they did not take advantage of the opportunity to upsell/ think beyond the one sale/ respect a customer's intelligence and reading their correspondence instead of steamrolling through it and stating the obvious- No, I haven't received any confirmation of payment of the postage that was incurred sending the rim back to Cell Fail.- No, Nothankyoucouriers are utterly useless and a total detriment to the transport industry and anyone related to it.- No, I won't be buying anything more from Cell fail. Other online retailers are far better at customer service and problem solving when something goes wrong.

Hi Lurkin,

I make myself available to looking into and fixing any issues forum members have encountered.

In the future, such a lengthy and detailed account of your experience may be best sent to me. Purhaps a summary and keypoints of your issues with us, will suffice for most forum members to be in a post.

I will look deeply into your situation and will do my best to offer some better solutions for you if you wish.

Apologies for us failing you. Your's and everyone's feedback is appreciated in helping me know how to help serve you better. I'm sure some members of this forum can attest to me doing my best to help them out, so I look forward to doing the same for you.

Mark@cellbikes; why not use the Australia Post E-Parcel system(if u dont already)?We use it at work and its great service and delivery and nothing lost yet in 12 months or more.Only limits are package to be under 22kgs and 1metre in length. No need for special packaging either, just box it up, print out the sticker and post. We have dealt with Couriers Please, Toll and many others. TNT are the worst for losing or breaking stuff.

fletch62 wrote:Mark@cellbikes; why not use the Australia Post E-Parcel system(if u dont already)?We use it at work and its great service and delivery and nothing lost yet in 12 months or more.Only limits are package to be under 22kgs and 1metre in length. No need for special packaging either, just box it up, print out the sticker and post. We have dealt with Couriers Please, Toll and many others. TNT are the worst for losing or breaking stuff.

Hi fletch62, we use an enterprise system that integrates both our online store & retail store together and lets us manage both.

The current system is the best value for money and features, however, amazingly, only allows for 1 shipping method.

We do send via Express Post when people place phone orders, however the default is by courier.

I am madly campaigning for us to find a solution to bring as many shipping solutions for you guys asap.

That's good of you Mark - I appreciate you have a testing job! However, this has proven that without being a forum member, or posting in this post, customers are not getting a good experience shopping from Cell Bike.

In the future, such a lengthy and detailed account of your experience may be best sent to me.

I've tried this method several times (not to you, another Cell Bikes employee), as illustrated, which failed.

Purhaps a summary and keypoints of your issues with us, will suffice for most forum members to be in a post.

No. The purpose of the post was to illustrate how much time and effort on my part has already gone into this matter and what experience/ responses were received so that other people considering purchasing from Cell Bikes have an idea of what they are getting into.

I think it quickly gets forgotten - whilst Cell Bikes are precious about it's refund/replacement policy, for many, their time is their product. Every minute spent on this could have been spent making $$. Frankly, if it was over a greater amount of money I would be referring the matter to a solicitor.

I will look deeply into your situation and will do my best to offer some better solutions for you if you wish.

Sounds great. Its a great opportunity to show what Cell Bikes can do in these situations. What solutions can you offer?

Lurkin wrote:That's good of you Mark - I appreciate you have a testing job! However, this has proven that without being a forum member, or posting in this post, customers are not getting a good experience shopping from Cell Bike.

Hi Lurkin, BNA is the largest and most popular cycling forum in Australia, so I'm doing my best to make myself available to anyone with a question or issue. I do my best to monitor as many outlets as possible in which people voice their situations. Please note that our Customer Service department (consisting of 3 full time employees, as well all of us who help out) get as many as 1,000 emails a day, which we deal with as best we can.

Lurkin wrote:Frankly, if it was over a greater amount of money I would be referring the matter to a solicitor.

We hope it never comes to having a solicitor contact us, and I am doing the best I can do resolve issues without coming to this.

Lurkin wrote:Sounds great. Its a great opportunity to show what Cell Bikes can do in these situations. What solutions can you offer?

I need to have a conversation with the Team and see what happened, and then I will get back to you, if you can send me an email ( [email protected] ).

Lurkin wrote:...- No, I won't be buying anything more from Cell fail. Other online retailers are far better at customer service and problem solving when something goes wrong.

Maybe next time you should buy some cheap Shimano wheels instead of cheap Mavic ones? Instead of being upset about them going out of true, you can then get upset about broken spokes, cracked rims and problems with freehubs.

And how much do you weigh? I wouldn't go near a 20 spoke wheel with a barge pole unless I was under 60kg.

Maybe next time you should buy some cheap Shimano wheels instead of cheap Mavic ones? Instead of being upset about them going out of true, you can then get upset about broken spokes, cracked rims and problems with freehubs.

And how much do you weigh? I wouldn't go near a 20 spoke wheel with a barge pole unless I was under 60kg.

They are the second set of Mavic Aksium rims I have owned, as posted earlier.

I have been very impressed/ satisfied with the first set - I have had them for over 6 months/ 2,500 kms and they are still true, hence the decision to purchase a second set.

Maybe next time you should buy some cheap Shimano wheels instead of cheap Mavic ones? Instead of being upset about them going out of true, you can then get upset about broken spokes, cracked rims and problems with freehubs.

And how much do you weigh? I wouldn't go near a 20 spoke wheel with a barge pole unless I was under 60kg.

They are the second set of Mavic Aksium rims I have owned, as posted earlier.

So, potentially you got lucky the first time. The second-last wheel I had built (32-spoke Mavic OpenPro rim, first and only time I will use Mavic) went out of true within 150km, and that was hand built by someone who knew what they are doing. Six months later it popped a spoke in a race, and now, after only ~17,000km it's gone out of true again. A light-weight machine-built 20-spoke staying true from the factory? More likely to go out of true than not.

Lurkin wrote:I have been very impressed/ satisfied with the first set - I have had them for over 6 months/ 2,500 kms and they are still true, hence the decision to purchase a second set.